At least 13 children drowned after a boat capsized in the Ganga near Rampur Shyamchand village in Bihar’s Vaishali district on Tuesday evening, in one of the state’s deadliest river accidents in recent years.
The tragedy struck at around 8:30 pm on October 13, when villagers from the Raghopur area were crossing the river to attend a shraddha bhoj feast in a neighbouring village. The boat went down mid-crossing, plunging its passengers — many of them children — into the dark waters of the Ganga.
District Magistrate Varsha Singh confirmed that all 13 of the dead were children — nine girls and four boys — and said every victim had been identified. According to the administration, all of the children were aged 15 or below.
Six people were pulled from the water alive and taken to Nalanda Medical College and Hospital in Patna, where they are reported to be in stable condition. The boat is estimated to have carried around 20 to 30 passengers, though the exact number on board could not be officially confirmed. Search-and-rescue operations, which continued through the night and the following day, were wrapped up on October 14.
Survivors have pointed to the condition of the vessel as the cause. Accounts gathered from those rescued say the boat had a hole through which water entered, and residents of the area allege the craft was old and dilapidated — and that their earlier requests for a replacement had gone unanswered. One rescuer told reporters that the police had been informed about the boat’s poor condition, but no action was taken.
The allegations have put the local administration under intense scrutiny. The District Magistrate has ordered an inquiry with a report to be submitted within 24 hours. In the first wave of action, show-cause notices were issued to the Raghopur Circle Officer and the Station House Officer, with their salaries withheld pending the review. Action has also been ordered against the registered owner and operators of the boat.
A critical question the inquiry will have to answer is enforcement. Night-time boat operations were already restricted in the area — the tragedy occurred well after dark — and officials are now investigating how the crossing was allowed to proceed in violation of the rules.
The grief has drawn a political response as well. RJD president Lalu Prasad Yadav met the bereaved families at his Patna residence on October 15, accompanied by Tejashwi Yadav, Rabri Devi and Misa Bharti.
Compensation has been announced from both the state and the Centre. Bihar Chief Minister Samrat Choudhary declared Rs 4 lakh for the family of each deceased child. Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced Rs 2 lakh from the Prime Minister’s National Relief Fund for the next of kin of each victim, and Rs 50,000 for each of the injured.
For the families of Rampur Shyamchand, though, no announcement can answer the harder question now before the administration: how a crowded, ageing boat set out across the Ganga on a dark evening — and who let it.
